Churchill caretaker ministry

Winston Churchill

The Caretaker Ministry of 1945 was a United Kingdom Ministry, which held office from 23 May 1945 until 26 July 1945, during the latter stages of the Second World War. The head of the government was the Prime Minister since 1940, Winston Churchill of the Conservative Party.

Formation of the caretaker government

After the defeat of Germany, in the Second World War, Winston Churchill (leader of the Conservative Party) proposed to Clement Attlee (leader of the Labour Party) and Sir Archibald Sinclair (leader of the Liberal Party) that the war-time coalition should continue until victory over Japan.

At first it seemed agreement would be reached, but at the Labour Party Conference in 1945 opinion was hostile to a continuation of the coalition. Attlee wrote to Churchill to confirm that his party wanted an election in October, and would leave the coalition then.

Churchill (under pressure from his party to hold a quick election to exploit his standing as the man who had won the war) then resigned as Prime Minister whilst the Labour conference was still in session. This brought the war-time coalition government to an end on 23 May 1945. King George VI the same day invited Churchill to form a government pending the general election.

The caretaker government was formed from members of the Conservative Party and the groups and politicians who had been associated with them in the National government, in office up to 1940.

The Liberal Party were determined to fight the general election as an independent party so they did not join the caretaker government. However one Liberal Member of Parliament, Gwilym Lloyd George, accepted an invitation to join the ministry.

General election and resignation of Churchill

Parliament was dissolved on 15 June 1945. Polling day was on 5 July 1945 and the results were declared on 26 July 1945. Mr Churchill, having been defeated in the election, resigned on 26 July and was replaced as Prime Minister by Clement Attlee.

Cabinet

• Lord President of the Council - Lord Woolton
• Lord Privy Seal - Lord Beaverbrook
• Chancellor of the Exchequer - Sir John Anderson
• Foreign Secretary - Anthony Eden
• Home Secretary - Donald Somervell
• First Lord of the Admiralty - Brendan Bracken
• Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food - Robert Hudson
• Secretary of State for Air - Harold Macmillan
• Secretary of State for the Colonies - Oliver Stanley
• Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs - Viscount Cranborne
• Minister of Education - Richard Law
• Secretary of State for India and Burma - Leo Amery
• Minister of Labour and National Service - Rab Butler
• Minister of Production and President of the Board of Trade - Oliver Lyttelton
• Secretary of State for Scotland - The Earl of Rosebery
• Secretary of State for War - Sir P. J. Grigg

List of Ministers

Members of the Cabinet are in bold face.

References

• History of the Liberal Party 1895-1970, by Roy Douglas (Sidgwick & Jackson 1971)
• Who's Who of British Members of Parliament: Volume III 1919-1945, edited by M. Stenton and S. Lees (The Harvester Press 1979)

• Attlee, by Kenneth Harris (Weidenfeld and Nicolson 1982)
• Twentieth Century British Political Facts 1900-2000, D. Butler and G. Butler (Macmillan Press 2000)

British governments 18th century Godolphin–Marlborough Harley Townshend First Stanhope–Sunderland Second Stanhope–Sunderland Walpole–Townshend Walpole Carteret Broad Bottom First Newcastle Devonshire–Pitt 1757 caretaker Second Newcastle Bute Grenville First Rockingham Chatham Grafton North Second Rockingham Shelburne Fox–North Coalition First Pitt the Younger 19th century Addington Second Pitt the Younger Ministry of All the Talents Second Portland Perceval Liverpool Canning Goderich Wellington Grey First Melbourne Wellington Caretaker First Peel Second Melbourne Second Peel First Russell Who? Who? Aberdeen First Palmerston Second Derby Second Palmerston Second Russell Third Derby First Disraeli First Gladstone Second Disraeli Second Gladstone First Salisbury Third Gladstone Second Salisbury Fourth Gladstone Rosebery Third Salisbury 20th century Balfour Campbell-Bannerman First Asquith Second Asquith Lloyd George Bonar Law First Baldwin First MacDonald Second Baldwin Second MacDonald First National Second National Third National Fourth National Chamberlain War Churchill War Churchill Caretaker Attlee Third Churchill Eden Macmillan Douglas-Home First Wilson Heath Second Wilson Callaghan First Thatcher Second Thatcher Third Thatcher Major Blair 21st century Brown First Cameron Second Cameron Current ministry